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That’s usually a nice thought in cycling. You can see all the cars ahead, and those behind can see you from way back, so no worries there. That’s nice and all.

The long road ahead of me right now though… well, it’s more daunting. I can see what’s ahead and I know what I need to get through. But it feels big at this point. My understanding – and hope – is that it gets easier and more enjoyable as I go along. That’s not to say I’m miserable right now; I’m enjoying this little trek. I just took too long away from this kin of stuff.

I went for a 35 mile ride yesterday. Not bad for not having ridden in a while. And I realize that. I’m just a little bummed that I’m not where I used to be. I know, it will come back. Especially since I plan to be training harder than I have before, as I had no real goals before, I just rode my bike when I felt like it. Having this goal will be helpful, and I’m excited about that.

I just have some work to do. I’m pretty confident that within a couple weeks I’ll have my cycling legs back. Hopefully soon after I’ll have my cycling weight back, and I think that alone will help immensely. It’s interesting how much of a difference an extra 30 pounds or so can make.

Today is the first day of my 12 weeks of training between now and the race. It will be time to really buckle down and get started actually training for this beast. Well – Monday will be anyway, Sundays will be rest days for me. Regardless, I’m excited to be starting down this road.

It’s not set in stone yet, but it might as well be. Three months from now I will be doing my first triathlon, a sprint here locally. As motivation I have two friends joining me – what better motivation than trash talk and friendly bets? I’m also going to attempt to maintain this blog as a means of motivation – something public that gives some indicator of my progress.

And I have a long way to go.

Why? Well, for one, I am absolutely not a swimmer. I dread this swim. Don’t get me wrong, I love the water. I’ve always loved being in and around water. And while I wouldn’t say I’m weak in the water, I’m certainly not strong. Thankfully this triathlon is only a 400m pool swim. Often sprint-distance triathlons are 800m and in open water, so I think this 400m in a pool thing will be a good way to ease into the swimming aspect of the tri – which is very nice since that’s where I have the least experience. I’ll still need to work hard in this area, though, and after the swim I had earlier this week, I certainly thing I could grow to enjoy this part of the tri.

The bike leg is where I’m least concerned. I don’t expect to be amazing – have I mentioned yet that part of my motivation for this thing is to get myself back in decent shape? Yeah, so I don’t expect to set any records here, but I’m comfortable on the bike. I know it, I somewhat know what I’m doing, and I know I can cycle the 15 or so miles without a problem. I just need to get to where I can do that and immediately follow it with the run.

Ugh… the run. You know, I take back what I said earlier. I don’t dread the swim the most- it’s the run I’m not looking forward to. I know I have more experience running than swimming, but that also means that swimming is still fun for me. That is until I potentially ruin it with all the swimming I’ll be doing over the next three months. Then again, I’ll be running quite a bit, too. Maybe I can always hate the run more than the swim…

Regardless, my first triathlon is coming up in three months. I officially start training Sunday. It’s time to start getting ready.

Oh, and for the record, my goal isn’t to do incredibly well at the race. My goal is merely to finish and feel good about how I did. I’ll worry about placement if I do more tris in the future.

Any tips for a first timer – maybe something you wish you knew your first time? Or maybe even thoughts on training regimen?